One year ago, media communications company DWPub did a poll of PR agencies to see how they were dealing with public sector cuts. When asked if they were confident in the face of government cuts in 2010, the results showed that industry confidence was extremely low, with one hundred per cent answering 'no'. Many had slashed budgets and client losses. This followed the Comprehensive Spending Review when Chancellor George Osborne announced heavy public sector spending cuts.
Daryl Willcox, chairman of DWPub, says that public-sector cuts have a knock-on effect on all its agencies and suppliers, and PR agencies are in the front line: “When faced with budgets to cut, public sector organisations often see PR as non-essential. As a result, it’s usually one of the first services to be reduced or removed altogether.”
To find out whether agencies are still feeling as negative about public sector work, a similar survey was conducted in November 2011. Results show that industry optimism is rising, despite the government’s Autumn Statement 2011 declaring further cuts.
Are you confident of winning new public sector clients over the coming year? (2011)
Source: DWPub Survey 2011
Key findings include:
- Nearly half (48 per cent) of PR agencies are confident of winning new public sector clients in 2012, in contrast to 2010’s survey which revealed all PR agencies questioned were not confident of winning any new clients.
- 2011’s research found that although 83 per cent said their public sector clients had cut budgets in the last year, 39 per cent were confident of being able to hold on to the accounts.
- While 48 per cent of PR agencies surveyed had public sector clients, almost two thirds (62 per cent) of these said they had lost some in the last 12 months.
Discussing the survey, Willcox says that despite a tough year, PR agencies have indicated there are still accounts to be won. However, he adds, “the impact of lost business has meant some agencies have had to adapt, refocusing on new sectors or accelerating adoption of new skills such as social media.”
The disbandment of the Central Office of Information (COI), due to be complete by the end of March, will inevitably have some impact on the way government does PR. Willcox believes that this could be of benefit for agencies: “Decentralisation may mean more government bodies seeking PR support direct from agencies, a structural change that may be going some way to insulate the industry from cuts.”
Looking forward to 2012, Willcox says there are sure to be fresh challenges for agencies with public sector clients: “The latest round of spending cuts may hit some PR spend that has so far been untouched. But many public sector bodies have a duty to communicate and lets hope those in charge realise PR is a cost-effective way to achieve this goal.”
Background
Media communications company DWPub surveyed 52 PR agencies in November to find out what impact public sector cuts are having on the PR industry. A similar survey was carried out a year ago.
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